166 GILBEET WHITE OF SELBOENE i769 



long or frequent excursions into Andalusia may not be 

 allowed of by the bigotted and narrow-minded Spaniards; 

 nor be consistent with the strict and rigid discipline of a 

 place at arms surrounded with a constant blockade of 

 jealous enemies. However I could earnestly wish to see 

 a well executed Fauna from that part of the world. 



" It is a matter of no small satisfaction to me to hear that 

 you are so forward in your work, and that it is to appear in 

 the spring." 



Letter XXII. to Pennant, dated January 2nd, 

 1769, contained originally the following passages : — 



"In your letter of June 28th, 1768, I could but admire 

 with how much frankness you acknowledged several mis- 

 takes in your 'Zoology' with respect to some birds of the 

 Grallm order. Candor is a very essential part of a j 

 ]!^aturalist, and this accomplishment our great countryman 

 Mr. Eay possessed in an eminent degree ; and that rendered 

 him so excellent. — If a man was never to write on natural 

 knowledge 'til he knew everything, he would never write at 

 all: and therefore a readiness to acknowledge mistakes on 

 due conviction is the only certain path to perfection. . . . 

 I often take up your * Zoology ' for an hour, and entertain 

 myself with comparing your descriptions with those of the 

 authors that have written on the same subject ; and am 

 pleased to find that my friend has thro' the whole acquitted 

 himself so much to advantage. Your treatise in particular 

 on migration I admire much, and think that if it is enlarged 

 as more information comes in, it will contribute much to 

 the advancement of natural knowledge. But there is a 

 passage in the article Goatsucker, page 247, which you will 

 pardon me for objecting to, as I always thought it exception- 

 able: and that is 'This noise being made cmly in its flight, 

 we suppose it to be caused by the resistance to the air 

 against the hollow of its vastly extended mouth and throat 



